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Juvenoia Is The Belief That Kids Today Are Worse Than Ever

September 12, 2016

Written byCuriosity Staff

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Ever hear yourself complaining about "kids these days"? George Orwell may have expressed this sentiment best when he said, "Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it." There's a term for his feeling: juvenoia. Coined by sociologist David Finkelhor, juvenoia is the exaggerated fear of the things that influence today's youth. But what's really wrong with kids these days? Nothing.

The idea that today's young people are more problematic than ever is a myth. For example, as reported by Time magazine, youth violence in 2014 was only about 12% of what it was two decades before. Older generations cite plenty of evidence when justifying their juvenoia: the music that's popular with youth, fashion styles, or other seemingly wild lifestyle choices. But in reality, the majority of teens aren't engaging in extreme or high-risk behaviors. And some of the trends that seem risky and extreme to older generations are no more shocking than what was popular when those generations were young. Learn more about juvenoia in the video below.